School Patron, Bishop John Fleming, and The Board of Management of St Muredach’s College are pleased to announce the appointment of our new Principal / President, commencing September 2023.
Wayne Walsh, a native of Oldcastle Co. Meath, joins a long list of illustrious past Principals / Presidents who have guided our Diocesan College for over one hundred years.
Wayne, who comes from a large family, attended primary and secondary school in Oldcastle, Co. Meath. Prior to leaving Ireland to pursue his passion for study and sport in the U.K., Wayne enjoyed representing his school and club at all age levels across a variety of sports. He competed for his county at various age groups for Soccer, Gaelic Football and Pitch and Putt.
After completing his Leaving Certificate, he attended Cavan Institute to complete a Sport and Recreation course where he won the Student of the Year accolade for his academic and sporting achievements before completing a Physical Education Degree course at Strawberry Hill London. As well as holding a First Class Undergraduate Degree in Physical Education, Wayne also holds a Masters in Educational Leadership with a First Class Distinction from St Mary's University, London and is currently completing a Doctorate in Education with Dublin City University. In his spare time, Wayne also tutors other school leaders on the Post Graduate Diploma in School Leadership programme for the University of Limerick.
Wayne now brings this wealth of knowledge, expertise and continuing professional development to his new role as Principal of St Muredach’s, drawing initially on his extensive experience as a Deputy Head Teacher in one of the highest performing Comprehensive Schools in England. During his time at that school, major additional buildings were completed in addition to the development of an astroturf pitch. The school consistently achieved in the top 10% of schools nationally for A level results. Over a period of 12 years, Wayne held numerous leadership posts and successfully led the work of all subject departments across the school in the delivery of quality education programmes. Wayne also successfully implemented a number of student enrichment programmes and achieved sustained success with sports teams at both provincial and national level – two key achievements he hopes to replicate with us in St Muredach’s.
In 2020, Wayne returned to Ireland where he took up the post of Principal of Castlepollard Community College. During his three years leading that school, enrolment grew by 35% and the number of students achieving over 400 points in the Leaving Cert quadrupled. Under his influence the school won three Leinster sporting titles in the 2022/23.academic year. He credits these achievements to the staff who worked wholeheartedly with him to support students in achieving their potential. In addition, the school is now at the planning permission stage for a major new extension, twice the size of its current footprint – a major focus of his work during his tenure at this school and another success story he hopes to repeat in St Muredach’s.
Wayne attributes his progression to date largely to the excellent role models he has been lucky enough to be inspired by throughout his life and to the Staff members he has been fortunate enough to work with and lead. He now looks forward to immersing himself fully in the academic, cultural, social, spiritual, and sporting life here at St Muredach’s and looks forward to meeting all the staff, students, and parents and collaborating with them in successfully leading this great institute of learning forward.